When I work on designing new floorplans for clients, there is a basic action plan I put into place which I wanted to share with you so you can have a deeper insight into how I transform bland into glam.

In a recent project for clients in Andover, MA, I worked on a Family Room where existing furniture had been collected since my clients’ college days, and they were ready for a room that felt more sophisticated and reflected their mature style, while also being durable for their very active five year old children.

My first step for all floorplan re-designs is to scale the room using my CAD program, which allows me to figure out the best way the room will function and determine the size/scale for all furniture, rugs, accessories, etc. so that I know exactly what I can incorporate into the room without making the room feel too crowded or too empty. Then…I shop!

I had free rein for the most part, however my clients did request that I modeled the re-design based on existing artwork (see below) they wanted in the room, which is what I ended up using as inspiration and compiling two subtly different looks (one soft & light and the other more playful & masculine) for the client to review. The biggest task was finding a rug that was child friendly (polyester/polypropylene material is generally the best bet) that didn’t throw off my entire vision. After sourcing online and narrowing it down to a couple rug options, I went to a local furniture store to source the upholstery and casegood options for the rest of the design plan.

I generally select casegoods which are very versatile, so “mixing and matching” can be done within all design options. The fabrics showcased below are also one of many color and material options to best fit the clients’ personal preferences.

Below are the two designs I proposed and *updated design with what we are moving ahead with. Feel free to comment which design you like best and why!

Inspired by client's existing art, which will be re-framed for new design plan

Floorplan Option A

Living Room Design Option A

Floorplan Option B

Living Room Design Option B

Casegood Options

UPDATED*

They went with Option B! We swapped some casegoods from Option A, added a floor lamp and new kid friendly table lamps.

Decided floorplan: all but end tables next to sofa and area rug size have changed

They went with Option B! We swapped some casegoods from Option A, added a floor lamp and new kid friendly table lamps.

Here is an updated photo of how things turned out - still more to come as things get delivered and installed!